…Hail Tinubu’s Two Years In Office
By Eric Moore
HUNDREDS of stakeholders including traditional rulers, youth leaders, students and citizens of the Niger Delta region, have praised President Bola Tinubu’s two years in office.
The stakeholders, who gathered in Port Harcourt, Rivers State on Friday, also demanded deeper development of the oil-rich region.
The programme themed “Two Years of Stewardship: Tinubu’s Footprint in the Niger Delta, Legacy in Motion,” centred on celebration, reflection, and renewed demands for inclusive development in the region.
In his welcome address, Niger Delta Progressive Alliance (NDPA) convener, Victor Udoh, described the event as a turning point for the Niger Delta, emphasizing that the time for transformation in the region is now.
Udoh said: “This day dawns not merely as a page turned on the calendar, but as a clarion call echoing across the creeks, rivers, and coastlines of the Niger Delta.
“In the heart of Port Harcourt, the symbolic capital of the Niger Delta, we gather not only to witness, but to reckon and to dream anew. This theme ‘The Future Is Here’ is neither a rhetorical flourish nor political optimism. It is an intentional declaration that we stand at the edge of a long-awaited inflection point, heralding a movement. A movement that proclaims, with hope and conviction, that the future is no longer a distant promise. It is here, now, and unfolding before our eyes.
Udoh commended President Tinubu for redirecting national attention toward peace-building and intellectual empowerment in the region, citing the progress in education, infrastructure and environmental recovery.
He also called for the deepening of development narratives that prioritize human dignity alongside resource management.
“We are not here merely to recount challenges or mark time, we have come to celebrate footprints of stewardship, intention, and transformation.
“It is two years into the administration of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu GCFR, and we are witnessing early fruits of genuine environmental recovery in the Niger Delta.
“We are seeing a redirection of energy from military deployment to intellectual and infrastructural empowerment. Universities now rise where tension once simmered, and peacebuilding gives way to economic building.
“Across the region, organizations once chiefly known for surveillance and security are becoming engines of corporate social responsibility and community engagement. The Niger Delta is no longer a metaphor for grievance and volatility. It is becoming a metaphor for possibility and visibility
“Visibility in environmental justice, where coastlines once ravaged by pollution are entering national consciousness as frontiers of regeneration.
“Visibility in national planning, governance, and intellectual capital. From the growing implementation of the Petroleum Industry Act to the rising prominence of Niger Delta voices at the helm of national affairs. We are no longer merely participants, we are shaping the direction of Nigeria’s unfolding narrative”.
On his part, the National Coordinator of the Niger Delta Youth Council Worldwide, Jator Abido, lauded President Tinubu’s reforms, including renewed attention to modular refineries, oil and gas asset protection and youth engagement.
He urged the administration to go further by strengthening the Presidential Amnesty Programme and working closely with the Niger Delta Development Commission
(NDDC) to implement youth-focused initiatives in education, skills, health, and mental wellness.
On his part, His Royal Majesty, Stanhope Okeorji of Amato Mgboko community in Abia State, acknowledged Tinubu’s efforts but appealed for stronger grassroots impact.
“It is not easy managing 36 states. We understand, but our people are complaining bitterly. Those close to the president should let him know,” he said.